The 2016/17 Cars.co.za Consumer Awards programme – powered by WesBank – concluded with the announcement of the thirteen best-considered new purchases in their respective categories of the South African new vehicle market, as well as the overall Brand of the Year, on 19 January 2017.

 Cars.co.za Consumer Awards was distinguished by two significant factors: it was backed by the biggest provider of vehicle finance in South Africa and, in conjunction with the 13 judges’ scores, the findings of the Cars.co.za’s Owner Satisfaction Survey (in association with Lightstone Consumer) had a substantial (50%) weighting on the final results, excluding the Brand of the Year award, which was based entirely on the Survey data.                                                                   

The winners are: 

Premium Hatchback of the Year                   Volkswagen Golf GTI DSG

 

First Class Car of the Year                             BMW 750Li Design Pure Excellence

 

Leisure Double-cab of the Year                  Ford Ranger 3.2 Wildtrak 4×4 Auto

 

Executive Sedan of the Year                       Jaguar XF 25t Portfolio

 

Premium SUV of the Year                            Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine Inscription

 

Business Class of the Year                            Audi A4 2.0T FSI Sport S tronic

 

Compact Family Car of the Year                 Suzuki Vitara 1.6 GL+

 

Fun Car of the Year                                         Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport DSG

 

Lifestyle SUV of the Year                              Land Rover Discovery Sport TD4 S

 

Compact Hatchback of the Year                 Opel Corsa 1.0T Enjoy

 

Budget Car of the Year                                  Suzuki Celerio 1.0 GL

 

Performance Car of the Year                      BMW M2 M-DCT

 

Family Car of the Year                                    Volkswagen Tiguan 1.4 TSI Comfortline DSG

 

Brand of the Year                                             Suzuki

Cars.co.za’s awards programme has a multi-faceted judging process, based on inputs from seven members of the experienced editorial team and six respected guest jurors drawn from specialist fields. The combined jury allocated scores to the three finalists in each category based on their assessments from two test days (on which available vehicles were compared back-to-back).

 

Once the judges’ scores were tallied and audited, the brand-specific data from the Cars.co.za Owner Satisfaction Survey, which incorporates feedback from thousands of South African new vehicle owners, based on their experiences of their vehicles (must be less than five years old and serviced through franchised outlets), was factored in for the purpose of calculating of the final results.

 

The prestigious Brand of the Year award, however, was determined solely by brands’ ratings in the Cars.co.za’s Owner Satisfaction Survey (in association with Lightstone Consumer), which was compiled from thousands of surveys completed between September 2015 and December 2016. Consumers rated the brands in terms of: after-sales service, overall ownership experience and sales processes of its dealerships. Changes in market share were also factored into the final standings.

 

 The results of the Cars.co.za Consumer Awards – powered by Wesbank, were verified by respected auditing firm KPMG.

 

The importance of incorporating consumer input

 

The fact that three models defended their Cars.co.za Consumer Awards titles that they won in the inaugural (2015/16) programme (two of them with different derivatives) underlines the quality of winning products and the sterling reputation of their manufacturers.

 

It must be noted, however, that the final results of three of the categories in the 2016/17 programme were determined by the findings of the Cars.co.za Owner Satisfaction Survey (as opposed to the cars that were favoured by the 13 judges).

 

About the event

 

The winners of the Cars.co.za Consumer Awards were announced at the Vodadome in Midrand on January 19 2017. The event was attended by approximately 300 guests including prominent South African motor industry executives, including representatives from vehicle manufacturers and importers, dealer groups, the finance sector, media agencies, social influencers and celebrities.

 

Comedian John Vlismas was the master of ceremonies and the awards (handcrafted car-key shaped trophies made from stainless steel, titanium, aluminium and acrylic) were handed over by the 13 judges as well as Cars.co.za CEO Ross McIlroy and WesBank CEO Chris de Kock.

 

Marketing guru Khaya Dlanga and Inês Jesus from Google Africa were guest speakers and entertainment was provided by Flash Republic. The event was digitally broadcast on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and, significantly, streamed live on Cars.co.za Youtube channel. The multi-platform broadcast allowed consumers, who are at the core of Cars.co.za’s awards programme, to actively participate in the event. Furthermore, the #CarsAwards hashtag was the top trending topics in South Africa on Twitter during — and immediately after — the event.

 

Visit http://www.carsawards.co.za for more information about the Consumer Awards, including the winners and finalists, and view images of the award recipients that were taken at the event.

 

About Cars.co.za

 

Leading online automotive retail portal Cars.co.za, which lists tens of thousands of new vehicles stocked by more than 1 000 vehicle dealers countrywide, delivers in excess of 30 million page views per month to more than a million unique users. Cars.co.za has a presence on multiple digital platforms and it’s ranked in the top 10 branded South African YouTube channels with 20 million views to date.